The two last ran against each other at the T.C. Williams Invitational earlier this spring and Lassiter edged Brown by about one second.

Saturday Lassiter kept that winning streak alive by not only beating Brown, but by posting one of the best times in the country in the 1,600. He ran a time of 4:09.15, a meet and school record. The fastest time in the country according to USA Today is by Mebrahtom Keflezighi of San Diego, who ran 4:08.32. Lassiter beat Keflezighi in the 1,600 during the indoor nationals in March in Syracuse, N.Y.

``We knew the 4:09 was coming,'' said Lafayette coach Mel Jones. ``We're thankful to Brown for pushing him the way he did. Brown was right on him for the whole race and Seneca felt it.''

Brown, who was on Lassiter's tail until the final 300 meters, recorded a 4:11.1, a personal best.

``I've never beaten him,'' said Brown. ``Today he took off during the last 400. He usually waits until the 200 to do that.''

According to Lassiter, he should have pushed himself even harder during the last 200 meters.

``I should have kicked it in even more during the 200, but I didn't know how much Brown had left in him,'' he said.

Last week Lassiter won the Peninsula District championship in 4:13. During the race he suffered a slight hamstring pull, which kept him from competing in the 800.

``My leg felt pretty good today,'' he said. ``I wasn't worried or anything. I put in my work because I knew it wouldn't be a piece of cake. Brown's a good runner. He helped me and I helped him today.''

According to Jones, Lassiter's time was the fastest ever recorded by a high school athlete in Virginia history.

``If Seneca saw that type of competition every week he'd be even better,'' Jones said. ``We want him to get under four minutes by the time he graduates.''

Lassiter also won the 3,200 with a time of 9:34.6. Brown captured first in the 800 by clocking in at 1:53.9.

Menchville's girls and boys won team championships, repeating their district titles of a week ago. The boys totalled 54 points while the girls tallied 82.

``I hope they'll still be hungry next week,'' said Menchville coach Don Mollenhauer. The Group AAA state meet is Friday and Saturday at Darling Stadium. ``It's really nice when both teams win. We need to enjoy it while we can because we still have one more week to go.''

Menchville's JoEtta Purter set a record in the 300-intermediate hurdles, winning in 43.16 seconds. Myra Williams and Natasha Morrison finished first and second in the shot put for the Monarchs, throwing 40-feet-6 1/4-inches and 38-2 3/4, respectively. The girls 1,600-meter relay team continued its winning streak by clocking in at 3:52.4. Anna Kohler rounded out Menchville's winners by winning the 800 in 2:13.62.

For the Monarch boys, Robert Hunt won the discus with a throw of 159-3 and Shaun Ricks won the 400 in 48.32 seconds.

LaTasha Colander, from Portsmouth's Wilson High School, broke two records Saturday en route to winning all three of her events. She ran 11.67 seconds in the 100 and 23.57 in the 200 to set records and the senior also won the 100-hurdles in 13.95 seconds.